“It is difficult for me, in these moments, to express the spiritual state of my soul, the state that accompanies an election which has bestowed upon me in equal measure a great honour and a heavy cross. I ask you to pray for me,” declared the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi, Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, His Holiness and Beatitude Shio III.

Following the great ecclesiastical council held at the Holy Trinity Cathedral, Catholicos-Patriarch Shio III expressed his gratitude to the clergy and congregation, and noted that it is both a tremendous honour and, at the same time, a profound responsibility to bear the title of the new Patriarch.

“First and foremost, I offer my thanks to Almighty God for this great mercy which He has shown. Thanks be to the Most Holy Mother of God. To the assembly of saints of the Orthodox Church, to the patron of the Diocese of Senaki and Chkhorotsku, Alexis of Senaki, and to our other glorious servants of the faith, for their intercession. My gratitude goes to the bishops of the Holy Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church for the immense trust they have placed in me. To every person who laboured tirelessly to ensure that this day was conducted with due dignity. My particular gratitude belongs to the Georgian people for their love, their prayers, and their solidarity. I also wish to express my heartfelt thanks to the clergy and congregation of the Diocese of Senaki and Chkhorotsku for the love they have shown and for the years spent together in the service of God and the Church.

The grace and mercy of God are immeasurable, and yet, at the same time, the cross of clerical leadership is a heavy one, and the responsibility immense. It is not given to us to fathom the providence and purpose of the Lord, nor to find an answer to why God has seen fit to bestow such grace. I am sensible, on the one hand, of the greatness and the honour of this calling, and on the other, of my own human frailty and insufficiency.

I ask you to pray for me. Pray for the future of our nation, that in love and in peace we may glorify the Lord and worthily continue our ministry for the good of the Church and of our people,” declared the Catholicos-Patriarch.

Metropolitan Shio was elected today as Georgia’s new, 142nd Catholicos-Patriarch at the expanded council of the Georgian Orthodox Church. The new Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, shall bear the name Shio III. The bishops cast their votes amongst three candidates. The results of the ballot were as follows: the locum tenens of the Patriarchal throne, Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku (Mujiri) received 22 votes; Metropolitan Iobi of Mroveli-Urbnisi (Akiashvili) received nine votes; and Metropolitan Grigoli of Poti and Khobi (Berbichashvili) received seven votes. Only members of the Holy Synod were entitled to vote at the expanded council.